The present application relates generally to wall-mounted, cantilever type shelf brackets, and specifically to such brackets which are used with wall-mounted slotted wall supports to support ventilated shelves made of metallic wire.
While for many years such wire shelving was strictly used in refrigerators, freezers, and in commercial establishments, recent years have seen a significant increase in the use of wire shelving for residential applications, particularly for closets and kitchen pantries. The increased popularity of such shelving is due in part to its ease of adaptation to a wide variety of storage applications and closet sizes. In a typical application, the shelves are supported by cantilever brackets which adjustably engage vertical slots in wall supports which are secured to the wall. Each of the brackets has at least one hook-like tab which engages the slots at a height designated by the user.
One problem of conventional ventilated or wire shelves of the type used with standard vertical wall supports, is that the wire shelves are somewhat unstable in their supporting brackets. This instability is particularly problematic when the forward edge of the shelf is loaded disproportionately to the rear portion of the shelf. An imbalanced condition is thus created, which promotes the tendency of the rear edge of the shelf to disengage from the cantilever bracket and flip upward. As such, conventional wire shelves have a tendency to become disengaged from the bracket, and sometimes spill their contents. Such situations may cause personal injuries and/or property damage.
One attempted solution to this problem of instability is addressed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,346,077. There, the bracket was provided with a plurality of nesting receptacles for accommodating the transverse rods of a typical wire shelf. In addition, a locking lip located near the rearmost or inner rod prevents the shelf from flipping up in the rear. However, a drawback of this design is that in instances when the shelf is lightly loaded and receives an impact directed generally horizontally toward the rear of the shelf, or from beneath the shelf, such as from inadvertent bumping by a user, the design of the patented bracket is such that the shelf may still become easily disengaged and cause injury or damage.
Another problem of conventional cantilever brackets for wire shelves is that the generally plate-like construction of the bracket creates a pivot point where the bracket engages the wall support, which becomes more unstable as the length of the bracket increases. As a result, conventional brackets have the tendency to move in a side-to-side manner.
Accordingly, a first object of the present invention is to provide an improved shelf bracket for wire shelves in which the wire shelf is securely retained in the bracket.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved shelf bracket for wire shelves in which the bracket retains the shelf even upon impacts which are directed from the front in a horizontal plane, or from beneath the shelf.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an improved shelf bracket for wire shelves in which the bracket is provided with integral formations for increasing lateral stability.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improved shelf bracket for wire shelves which features supplemental locking inserts which are used to lock at least one of the shelf rods in a corresponding one of the bracket slots.